Richmond hosted the National Speech and Debate Tournament, the world’s largest academic competition, for the first time June 14-19.
The seeds of the national tournament coming to Richmond were sown in 2018 when the Richmond Forum began working to grow competitive speech and debate teams in public schools across central Virginia. Of the 16 local students who qualified for nationals this year, 10 were from Chesterfield County Public Schools:
Bird High: Krishelle Belcher in dramatic interpretation
Clover Hill High: Jasmine Franco in Lincoln-Douglas debate and Lydia Joh in congressional debate/House
Cosby High: Connor Preciado in congressional debate/House and Abigail Willis in original oratory
James River High: Evelyn Gayle in informative speaking, Malcolm Hess in U.S. extemporaneous speaking and Naomi Fife in humorous interpretation
Monacan High: Ava Cordovana and Elise Mackey in humorous duo interpretation
Additional Chesterfield students competed in supplemental events at nationals:
Bird High: Jeyssi Funes Salgado in impromptu
Clover Hill High: Calder Berneche in storytelling
James River High: Luke Baker and Matthew Gosselin, both in expository speaking and impromptu
Meadowbrook High: Ravyn Morris in poetry interpretation and Michael Johnson in impromptu
Audience members who might have expected speech and debate to be yawn-inducing found instead that it is more performance than recitation and that topics across the 42 categories are anything but boring. For example, in just one room of one round of the informative speaking category, topics included Gen Z loneliness, reproductive rights, death and remembrance customs, menstruation, and studying the humanities.
Multiply those wide-ranging topics by 7,000 high school competitors from all 50 states and seven nations and imagine the swirling universe of impassioned arguments that arose across the 10 competition sites of the National Speech and Debate Tournament. Three of those sites were Chesterfield County schools: Clover Hill High, Manchester High and Bailey Bridge Middle.
This was Evelyn Gayle’s third time to qualify to compete at nationals. She graduated in May as the salutatorian of James River High. Evelyn qualified in informative speaking, making the case for the importance of studying the humanities. Her first two national tournaments were in Des Moines, Iowa. While she likes to travel, she said, “Having that home-field advantage not only lets me not stress as much [about travel details], but I also have my home environment to prepare in.”
Three-time national qualifier Evelyn Gayle is heading to the University of Virginia.
Heading this fall to the University of Virginia to study behavioral neuroscience, Evelyn said, “One of the biggest benefits of speech and debate is learning how to speak and learning how to speak on the fly. But there’s more than that. It’s the teamwork. It’s the camaraderie. It’s not always about winning. [Coach Sanchez] always says ‘Winning is not an objective. It’s a consequence.’”
Evelyn achieved much success during her speech and debate years, but she said the main benefit was finding community and hearing different viewpoints. “It’s more about the experience,” she said. “It’s about seeing what people have to say, about hearing the different ideas. That’s what it is for me. I like hearing what other people have to say and learning from them — and also offering something myself potentially.”
While Evelyn estimated she performed her informative presentation on the humanities 20 to 30 times over the season, Meadowbrook High rising junior Michael Johnson never gives the same presentation twice — and doesn’t have an inkling what his topic will be before he enters the competition space. That’s because he competes in impromptu speaking. Students in this category receive random topics, then have a total of 7 minutes to prepare and present.
A first-year competitor, Michael said he chose impromptu because “I’ve always been good at thinking on my feet.” He said he enjoyed being on the team and plans to continue next year.
This was also the first year for Michael’s teammate Ravyn Morris, a rising junior who competes in poetry interpretation, a category where students combine poems, information and movement into dynamic presentations.
Rising juniors Ravyn Morris and Michael Johnson compete for Meadowbrook High, coached by Hajnalka Woosley.
Ravyn said she created five different presentations throughout the season, including one about depression that she debuted at nationals. Why so much change? Ravyn said that every time she competed, she learned and developed new skills. “Some of it was … I didn’t want to do the same piece over and over and over again all year. And I was learning about what to include in my pieces from the people I was competing with. It’s a great learning experience to see what they do.”
With seven students and support from the Richmond Forum and assistant coach Kristin Thrower, coach Hajnalka Woosley started the Meadowbrook High speech team five years ago because “I want to give my students the power to speak and the power to not be afraid to find their place. … We do care about trophies, obviously, but more than anything I just care about the kids having the power to use their voices. I love these kids.”
The team has grown every year, with students finding success at state and regional competitions. Having the national tournament nearby made a difference for Meadowbrook. “We’re just thankful to be here,” Woosley said, adding that the experience will inspire students and increase their skills.
Jessica Sanchez, head coach at James River High, agreed about the benefits of participating in the National Speech and Debate Tournament. “Just being here is a big deal,” she said. Statistics from the National Speech and Debate Association show that speech and debate participation leads to higher GPAs, improved analytical skills, better attendance and higher self-esteem.
Asked why young people should consider competing in speech, Sanchez said, “It is the single most life-changing thing that you can do that is lifelong. It changes who they are. It shows them that they have a seat at the table everywhere they go.” Sanchez said a student recently expressed to her how they had benefited, saying: “I know I can do anything. I’m not afraid to go to college. I’m not afraid to take hard classes. In speech, I found my people and I found my voice.”
Sanchez is a star in the speech and debate community. Earlier this year, she was named Virginia’s winner of the Outstanding Speech and Debate Educator Award — one of only 15 people honored in the United States. Her award citation stated: “Jessica Sanchez has transformed speech and debate at James River High School, building a nationally recognized program. … A two-time Virginia Forensics Coach of the Year and NSDA District Coach of the Year, she exemplifies leadership, innovation and dedication to empowering student voices.”
One of the many student voices she has inspired is that of her son, Joey Sanchez Tucker. A 2023 James River High graduate, he won two state titles in speech and qualified three times for nationals. Now he’s studying cybersecurity in college and volunteering as an assistant speech coach at James River High and at Monacan High.
James River High coaches Jessica Sanchez and Joey Sanchez Tucker agree that speech changes lives.
He summed up the benefits of speech and debate: “Short term: community. It’s a place where anyone can really get in and do it. Long term: It teaches you — it’s the obvious answer — public speaking skills, networking. It teaches you how to do all of those real career-oriented skills of understanding and how to make connections with people. Nowadays, that’s what really matters.”
Results from nationals
In the world schools debate category, two Cosby High students were on the Virginia Crimson team. Recent graduate Reagan Goldsmith and rising senior Ian Perez were selected along with three students from other school districts. Coached by former CCPS teacher Shannon Costello, Virginia Crimson made it to the third elimination round, meaning the team placed in the top 30.
Three James River High students advanced in their categories to an elimination round (that’s called “breaking” in the world of speech and debate). Malcolm Hess broke in extemporaneous commentary and broke through the second elimination round in impromptu. Luke Baker broke through the second elimination round in impromptu. Matthew Gosselin broke in expository speaking and impromptu.